name · noun · verb · 17 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
men'tôr
men'tər
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈmɛn.tɔː/
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈmɛn.toə/without the horse–hoarse merger
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Canada, General-American:/ˈmɛn.toɹ/
Canada, General-American:/ˈmɛn.tɚ/
Australian, New-Zealand:/ˈmen.toː/
rhymes with -ɛntə(ɹ)
rhymes with -ɛntɔː(ɹ)
CMU ARPABET:M EH1 N T AO2 R
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
CMU ARPABET 2:M EH1 N T ER0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
name
Meaning 1
Odysseus's trusted counselor. He was assigned the responsibility of raising Odysseus's son Telemachus while Odysseus was away fighting in Troy.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
name
Meaning 2
A male given name from Ancient Greek.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
name
Meaning 3
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community in Jefferson Township, Dubois County, Indiana.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
name
Meaning 4
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community and census-designated place in Saline County, Kansas.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
name
Meaning 5
A number of places in the United States:
A minor city in Campbell County, Kentucky.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
name
Meaning 6
A number of places in the United States:
A township in Cheboygan County, Michigan.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
name
Meaning 7
A number of places in the United States:
A township in Oscoda County, Michigan.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
8
name
Meaning 8
A number of places in the United States:
A minor city in Polk County, Minnesota.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
9
name
Meaning 9
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community in Greene County, Missouri.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
10
name
Meaning 10
A number of places in the United States:
A city in Lake County, Ohio, the largest place with this name, named after the Greek Mentor.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
11
name
Meaning 11
A number of places in the United States:
An unincorporated community in Garfield County, Washington.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
12
name
Meaning 12
A number of places in the United States:
A ghost town in Jackson County, West Virginia.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
13
name
Meaning 13
A number of places in the United States:
A town in Clark County, Wisconsin.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
14
noun
Meaning 14
A wise and trusted counselor or teacher.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
15
verb
Meaning 15
To act as someone's mentor.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: transitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
16
noun
Meaning 16
a wise and trusted guide and advisor
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: wise man
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: intellectual, intellect
Narrower terms: sage
17
verb
Meaning 17
serve as a teacher or trusted counselor
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
The famous professor mentored him during his years in graduate school
She is a fine lecturer but she doesn't like mentoring
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: teach, learn, instruct
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Ancient Greek Μέντωρ (Méntōr, “Mentor”).
From French mentor, from Ancient Greek Μέντωρ (Méntōr, “Mentor”), a mythological character in the Odyssey, whose name, a historical name from Ancient Greece, shares the same root as English mind. Cognate to Sanskrit मन्तृ (mantṛ, “advisor, counselor”) and Latin monitor (“one who admonishes”), and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *monéyeti (compare Latin moneō (“to warn”), causative form of *men- (“to think”).
Across languages
Translations
59 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Armenian:
Մենտոր
— Odysseus's counselor
Bulgarian:
Ментор
— Odysseus's counselor
Danish:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
French:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
German:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
Greek:
Μέντωρ
(Méntor)
— Odysseus's counselor
Ancient Greek:
Μέντωρ
(Méntōr)
— Odysseus's counselor
Italian:
Mentore
— Odysseus's counselor
Japanese:
メントール
(Mentōru)
— Odysseus's counselor
Latin:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
Polish:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
Portuguese:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
Spanish:
Méntor
— Odysseus's counselor
Turkish:
Mentor
— Odysseus's counselor
Bulgarian:
наставник
(nastavnik)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Bulgarian:
ментор
(mentor)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Chinese Mandarin:
指導者 /指导者
(zhǐdǎozhě)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Chinese Mandarin:
導師 /导师
(dǎoshī)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Danish:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Dutch:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Dutch:
leidsman
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Esperanto:
mentoro
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Finnish:
ohjaaja
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Finnish:
oppi-isä
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Finnish:
mentori
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
French:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
German:
Mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
German:
Vertrauensperson
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
German:
Vertrauenslehrer
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Greek:
μέντορας
(méntoras)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Gujarati:
શિક્ષક
(śikṣak)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Hebrew:
מַנְחֶה
(manẖé)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Hebrew:
חוֹנֵךְ
(ẖonéch)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Hindi:
मार्गदर्शक
(mārgadarśak)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Indonesian:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Indonesian:
pembimbing
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Italian:
mentore
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Italian:
pigmalione
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Italian:
tutore
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Japanese:
メンター
(mentā)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Korean:
멘토
(mento)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Macedonian:
у́чител
(účitel)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Macedonian:
ме́нтор
(méntor)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Macedonian:
воспи́тувач
(vospítuvač)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Eastern Mari:
ача
(ača)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Portuguese:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Russian:
наста́вник
(nastávnik)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Russian:
ме́нтор
(méntor)
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Spanish:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Swedish:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Turkish:
hoca
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Welsh:
mentor
— wise and trusted counselor or teacher
Bulgarian:
наставлявам
(nastavljavam)
— to act as someone's mentor
Finnish:
opastaa
— to act as someone's mentor
Finnish:
ohjata
— to act as someone's mentor
Finnish:
mentoroida
— to act as someone's mentor
German:
betreuen
— to act as someone's mentor
Serbo-Croatian:
mentorirati
— to act as someone's mentor
Serbo-Croatian:
mentorisati
— to act as someone's mentor